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Prior to the formation of the Bank of Canada in 1934 and the first Bank of Canada notes issued in 1935, most of Canada's banknotes of $5 and higher denominations were issued by the Chartered banks. This is a complete set of all five denominations issued by the National Bank / La Banque Nationale in 1922.

These notes were all samples of the initial printing of this issue in 1922, and have recently been obtained from the archive vaults of the National Bank of Canada. Less 150 of each of the $5, $20, $50 and $100 notes are believed to exist, while a few hundred of the $10 notes are thought to have survived. Issued $5, $10 and $20 notes of this type are extremely rare and sell for more than $2,000 in mid grade circulated condition. Early $50 and $100 notes are all rare and highly sought after. There are no issued $50 or $100 notes of this type known to have survived, although other rare $50 and $100 notes of this era typically sell for between $5,000 and $20,000. These notes are exactly the same as issued notes, except that they are marked specimen rather than having serial numbers or a signature at the left side.

"Gem Uncirculated 65" Condition: These near perfect notes have been graded as "Gem Uncirculated 65". Most surviving specimen notes from this issue were used as samples to show bank employees what the new issue would look like. These sample notes usually show some signs of handling and are usually graded as typical "uncirculated 60". However, a small number of original new notes were kept by the main bank office in 1922 and never handled. These pristine near perfect notes have exceptional paper quality and are absolutely beautiful. They are also much rarer than the typical "uncirculated 60" notes. The notes come sealed in protective packaging from Canadian Coin & Currency verifying their professional opinion of the grade of the notes and that they are genuine.

Rarity: Less than 150 specimen $5, $20, $50 and $100 notes of this issue are believed to exist, while a few hundred $10 notes are believed to exist.

Bank History: La Banque Nationale was founded in 1860 and had over 230,000 customers by 1918. In 1923, La Banque Nationale merged with the Provincial Bank and La Banque d'Hochelaga to form La Banque Canadienne Nationale. This was the largest francophone bank in Canada with over 260 branches. In 1979, Banque Canadienne Nationale merged with La Banque Provinciale du Canada to from the National Bank of Canada.